fbpx
Congratulations! Let us know your lessons learned and how our products have helped you prepare.
Please remember that you are not allowed to discuss any specific questions that you encounter on the exam.

TOPIC: Started on 4th Jan 2014 - Passed on 19th Feb - LL

Started on 4th Jan 2014 - Passed on 19th Feb - LL 10 years 9 months ago #4045

  • Joy Iyer
  • Joy Iyer's Avatar Topic Author
  • Offline
  • Fresh Boarder
  • Fresh Boarder
  • Posts: 13
  • Thank you received: 6
That's right, strange as that may seem, that was the timeline I afforded myself in my attempt at PMP certification.

After a quick check I decided on going with the PM Prepcast as my study aid. I purchased the Prepcast on the 4th of Jan and started going through the lessons immediately on my iPad. I would listen to the applied concepts lessons via my iphone on my drive to and from work.

I took the contact hours exam as soon as I was eligible, which was the 18th. After this I immediately applied via the PMP website and after 4 days of processing time was able to book myself at the Prometric centre on the 19th of Feb (this was the only date which was available around the time I was looking at, although a week later would have been ideal).

My study plan was to go through the prepcast first, then memorize the process groups/knowledge areas table and then going through the PMBOK guide. I then embarked on the Exam simulators.

I was able to attempt all but 1 exam, and each exam was attempted just once.
I managed to score in the 70s on all attempts. I was a little tense since I wasn't scoring 80+, but I tried to be calm about it.

I must mention that I have 11 years experience working in projects and juggled my preparation with a full time job.
I also indulged in a few breaks like dining out with friends and family, hoping that this would help me relax a little. And it did work.

During the exam I did not feel like it started off very well. However, I told myself to focus on 1 question at a time.
I was slower on the real exam than I was on the simulations. With 40 minutes remaining I started reviewing the marked questions.
With 25 minutes remaining I went back to question 1 and started reviewing all questions. This is when I realized that my initial attempts were not too bad, and I could not disagree with/second guess the answers I had marked.
By the time the clock ran out I had reviewed the first 100 questions only.

My score was MP for initiating and closing, P for planning, M&C and execution.......not a very bad score if I may say so.

My main learnings from this experience are
1. afford yourself more time......not a month and a half like I did. I believe 2 and a half months would be ideal, ensuring that you are on your toes when it comes to intensity of exam preparation
2. take 1 question at a time and do not bother too much about how well or poorly you have answered the previous few questions


I will be happy to answer any questions you all have.
Good luck to all of you!
Joy Iyer, PMP, FS Eng (TÜV Rheinland, SIS, PH&RA) & Community Moderator
Last edit: by Joy Iyer.
Moderators: Yolanda MabutasMary Kathrine PaduaJohn Paul Bugarin

OSP INTERNATIONAL LLC
OSP INTERNATIONAL LLC
Training for Project Management Professional (PMP)®, PMI Agile Certified Practitioner (PMI-ACP)®, and Certified Associate in Project Management (CAPM)®

Login